Come January the newly elected House and Senate members will be sworn in. This means both good and bad for charter school folks. Some very staunch pro-teachers union/anti-charter schools people were elected and we can bet at least some will want to serve on one of the two education committees. House Ed will probably still be chaired by Rep. Mike Merrifield (the "charterizers deserve a special place in hell" infamous email author).
Senator Peter Groff, Senate President, is a very strong supporter of charter schools and will probably make sure he has good control over the Senate Ed committee. Sen. Windels, term-limited and out-going chair of Senate Ed, was Sen. Groff's opponent on many issues even though they are from the same party. Sen. Windels was the other person in the Merrifield email exchange that was critical of charter schools.
Keith King, a founder of Cheyenne Mountain Charter Academy in 1995, James Irwin Charter High School in 2000 and Colorado Springs Early College in 2007, has been elected to the state Senate after formerly serving eight years in the House. During his prior service in the General Assembly, Keith King was a staunch supporter of charter schools and one of the most knowledgeable members on the charter school issue ever to serve. Sen.-elect King is in his second year of being an administrator at the charter high school he started to serve at-risk students and make it easier for them to attend college, by providing the opportunity to get both a high school diploma and an Associates Degree. With this "in the trenches" experience, Sen.-elect King will be an even better advocate for quality public schools!
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